Letters to the Editor: 15 March, 2020

Equities look attractive after stock market meltdown!

Banks going bust has shaken the confidence of citizens who have now become hesitant to keep large sums of money in bank’s fixed deposits after the PMC and Yes Bank fiasco. The Coronavirus and crude crash globally has resulted in stock markets crashing. However, it is a boon in disguise for investors to cash on in these times of turmoil. Today, blue chip companies are available at mouthwatering valuations and some even below their book value. The dividend offered in many companies is even higher than FD’s and every investor can think of parking funds in equities if they have a long term horizon.

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Buy when everybody sells and vice versa is a golden rule to make money in stock markets but people do the reverse which is why people have had bad experience in stocks. One’s portfolio today should be distributed in pension funds, post office schemes guaranteed by the government and equities which are attractive at the moment. I have been picking up stocks of HDFC group companies, Infosys, TCS and other top companies which I am confident would perform well in the times to come. FD’s in private banks offer interest which when compared to inflation gives negative returns. This is the best time to invest in equities and the brave hearted can take risks for phenomenal gains in the days to come!

Virus of pseudo-secularism in India is still so high that even courts are compelled to make sue-motto Sunday sittings for taking cognizance of so-termed hurting right to privacy of rioters by ordering removal of hoardings depicting picture of those against whom cost is imposed for rioting. It was great of UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who instantly reacted by bringing out an ordinance for enabling government to recover cost of damage from rioters and putting their photos on public-hoardings in much desired name-and-shame policy when Supreme Court asked the law under which such steps were taken. If putting pictures of rioters in public hurts right to privacy, then photos of criminals should also be removed from all police-stations.

Central government should also act immediately to rectify outdated laws so that persons responsible for killing IB officer Ankit Sharma and Head Constable Ratan Lal may be hanged in a time-bound period of say maximum one year to create a much-desired fear against riot-killing and other crimes attracting death-penalty. Otherwise Ankit Sharma and Rattan Lal may not get justice till infinity like is being seen in case of Nirbhaya killers. Law should be so amended that even courts may not be able to interfere in quick-most justice-delivery-system especially in cases attracting death-penalty.